The words of {Hebrew: Koheleth}the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher; vanity of vanities, all is vanity.
What profit hath man of all his labor wherein he laboreth under the sun?
One generation goeth, and another generation cometh; but the earth abideth for ever.
The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to its place where it ariseth.
The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it turneth about continually in its course, and the wind returneth again to its circuits.
All the {Or, torrents}rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; unto the place whither the rivers go, thither they go again.
{Or, All words are feeble}All things are full of weariness; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
That which hath been is that which shall be; and that which hath been done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
Is there a thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been long ago, in the ages which were before us.
There is no remembrance of the former generations; neither shall there be any remembrance of the latter generations that are to come, among those that shall come after.
I the Preacher was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven: it is a sore travail that God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised therewith.
I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and {Or, a feeding on wind (see Hosea 12:1) Or, vexation of spirit (and so elsewhere)}a striving after wind.
That which is crooked cannot be made straight; and {Hebrew: defect}that which is wanting cannot be numbered.
I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I have gotten me great wisdom {Or, yea, more than all}above all that were before me {Hebrew: over.}in Jerusalem; yea, my heart {Hebrew: hath seen abundantly.}hath had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.
And I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also was a striving after wind.
For in much wisdom is much grief; and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.
Querverweise zu Prediger 1,16 Pred 1,16
But Gehazi the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared this Naaman the Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought: as Jehovah liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him.
So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom {Or, stood by me}remained with me.
But solid food is for {Or, perfect}fullgrown men, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern good and evil.
{Or, Be ye angry}Stand in awe, and sin not:Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. [Selah
behold, I have done according to thy word: lo, I have given thee a wise and an {Hebrew: hearing.}understanding heart; so that there hath been none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
I call to remembrance my song in the night:I commune with mine own heart;And my spirit maketh diligent search.
And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and honor, so that there {Or, hath not been}shall not be any among the kings like unto thee, all thy days.
Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off nations not a few.
For he saith, Are not my princes all of them kings?
Is not Calno as Carchemish? is not Hamath as Arpad? is not Samaria as Damascus?
As my hand hath {Or, reached}found the kingdoms of the idols, whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria;
shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols?
Wherefore it shall come to pass, that, when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will {Hebrew: visit upon.}punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.
For he hath said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I have understanding: and I have removed the bounds of the peoples, and have robbed their treasures, and like a valiant man I have brought down {Or, the inhabitants}them that sit on thrones:
and my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the peoples; and as one gathereth eggs that are forsaken, have I gathered all the earth: and there was none that moved the wing, or that opened the mouth, or chirped.
And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east, and all the wisdom of Egypt.
that saith, I will build me a wide house and spacious chambers, and cutteth him out windows; and it is ceiled with cedar, and painted with vermilion.
Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me; {Hebrw: thou hast added wisdom and goodness to the fame.}thy wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame which I heard.
Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: It shall come to pass in that day, that things shall come into thy mind, and thou shalt devise an evil device:
So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.
and thou shalt say, I will go up to {Or, an open country}the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell securely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates;
And all the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
The king spake and said, Is not this great Babylon, which I have built for the royal dwelling-place, by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?
Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people; for who can judge this thy people, that is so great?
And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thy heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honor, nor the life of them that hate thee, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king:
wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honor, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee; neither shall there any after thee have the like.
Huram said moreover, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, that made heaven and earth, who hath given to David the king a wise son, endued with discretion and understanding, that should build a house for Jehovah, and a house for his kingdom.
So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.
And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.